Alcoa Consumer Electronics

Apple's Keyboard Dock for iPad an Infinitely Recyclable Accessory

Just as the Apple Wireless Keyboard is the perfect companion piece to the iMac, the Apple Keyboard Dock is a perfect accessory for the iPad. Both feature sleek, matte unibody aluminum that is infinitely recyclable.

Apple's New iPad Features Infinitely Recyclable Aluminum

This week, Steve Jobs took the stage and held up the iPad, Apple’s long awaited tablet. Steve said, "Environmentally, the iPad is a good citizen." And, for good reason! The Apple iPad is made from infinitely recyclable aluminum. Matte aluminum wraps around the backs and sides of the iPad, tapering a bit around the edges. If you've ever held one of the latest unibody MacBooks, you know exactly the kind of feel and finish of the iPad's aluminum. Unlike the polished chrome of the iPod or glossy plastic of the iPhone, the back of the iPad seems less likely to show fingerprints and wear.

Besides recyclability, Apple added lots of other features giving the iPad a good grade for green. Features include LED-backlit display (means a longer battery life per charge), up to 10 hours battery life (about 2-3 hours better than the average netbook), rechargeable lithium-polymer battery (can be recharged up to 1,000 times while maintaining 80% of its original charge capacity over the typical 5-year lifespan), and arsenic-free display glass, mercury-free LCD display, and is BFR- and PVC-free.

In summary, Apple has once again built a product that looks good and will feel great in the hand. The glass and aluminum enclosure (Apple signature materials) means that the iPad will have the same solid feel of the newest MacBook Pros which are also made from infinitely recyclable aluminum!

Cat Schwartz, eBay Gadget Director, says big trend in consumer electronics is growing use of aluminum

From the World’s Largest Consumer Electronics Show, Cat Schwartz, the eBay Tech and Toy Director and Founder of HiTechMommy.com Gives an Inside Look at the Technology That Will Be Changing Our Lives in 2010

Alcoa Aluminum
Alcoa Aluminum One of the biggest trends in consumer electronics is the growing use of aluminum from companies like Alcoa. According to a recent report from JP Morgan, aluminum is now the material of choice in the industry as companies are looking to make electronics light, thin, recyclable and have surface treatments that allow for "fashion" colors.

Diddy Beats

Sporting a high-tech aluminum and leather-wrapped housing and high-polished enamel, Diddy Beats embody a celebration of pop culture and high fashion that truly exemplify how "sound is life."

Sony Confirms What We Already Know…

It’s Friday at the 2010 CES. There are more than 2,500 vendors and thousands of people milling around checking out the latest in this year’s gadgetry. I stopped at the Sony booth where their Z Series VAIO notebooks are forged from high-grade aluminum. I asked them why they chose aluminum as the metal. Their managing director told me three reasons: lightweight, durable, and strong. Looks like the trend forecasters had it right – the look, feel and durability of aluminum is making this year’s “hot products”, cooler. Listen to the interview.

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Alcoa’s Shion Hung Explains the Aluminum Attraction to the CE Market

We took a break at CES to sit down with Shion Hung, Senior Manager, Strategy Development, Alcoa - Growth Initiatives Group and hear about the outlook for aluminum and Alcoa in consumer electronics.

How are aluminum notebook cases being viewed by customers and what is the outlook for using aluminum going forward?

Shion: Customers see aluminum as a premium material, especially for laptops. Aluminum allows OEMs to design slimmer, attractive laptops without sacrificing durability compared to plastics. We’ve seen throughout this show that many OEMs prefer aluminum for their flagship notebooks, like the Dell Adamo, Asus U series, HP Envy and the Sony Z-series.

What consumer technologies is Alcoa most excited about and how does Alcoa see itself growing in this market?

Shion: I personally am excited about opportunities in e-readers, where the slim sturdy feel of aluminum can add value. Also, we’re exploring how aluminum might be used for better thermal management of LED TVs. Finally, I’m excited that CE is starting to take green seriously. Since aluminum is infinitely recyclable and durable, it is a great material for the consumer technology market.

Aluminum ASUS Notebook Gets Lots of Oohs and Aahs

The ASUS NX90 is one classy aluminum-clad notebook. Designed by award winning Danish designers Bang & Olufsen, it is a striking polished aluminum showpiece that fits in perfectly with B&O’s exclusive stereo gear. The NX90 features a polished aluminum exterior and palm rest that matches the matte-black keyboard. The machine has dual touch pads and two large speakers on each side of the screen to emulate surround sound. It’s been dubbed “The Sexiest Model of the Year,” by Walyou, and, in its press release, ASUS described the NX90 as “elevating innovation into an art form.” No matter how you describe it, the NX90 designed with aluminum is a sophisticated product.

Electronics Going Green

According to an article in Ad Age on Jan. 4, one of the Top 10 Green Trends for the New Year is “Geeky Gadgets to Thoughtful Technology.” Visitors at CES who attend Friday’s discussion on making electronics greener (http://www.cesweb.org/exhibits/displays/sustaintablePlanet.asp) will likely see a lot of evidence of that theme. The Ad Age article cited an example of how even large corporations are developing green products, including Apple's 17-inch MacBook Pro made of recyclable aluminum with 34% less packaging than the previous model. Why the growing interest in aluminum? Aluminum is infinitely recyclable and allows for uni-body designs that replace individual parts with a single piece of recyclable aluminum. Alcoa's aluminum solutions can reduce carbon footprint by offering more durable parts that are recyclable. Green is definitely the color for electronics in 2010.

Media Hears Benefits of Aluminum at CES

Ebay's gadget editor Cat Schwartz was part of a satellite media tour live from the show room floor in Las Vegas. She spoke with nearly 40 TV and radio stations from across the US about the hottest trends from the Consumer Electronics Show.

Here's one of the key points she made when speaking with TV stations from Atlanta to Detroit to New York.

"One of the big things consumers are also looking for is their consumer electronics to be a lot more eco-friendly and this is a huge trend I’m seeing companies move toward. To that end, aluminum is becoming the material of choice in the industry as companies are looking to make electronics light, thin and recyclable. In fact, 73% of all the aluminum ever produced since 1888 (when it was invented) is still in use today! So companies who make aluminum, like Alcoa, are creating a lot of buzz this year."

One Metal, Many Faces

To think of aluminum as just another silvery-white metal is to overlook a remarkable spectrum of design opportunities. Its light weight enables you to trim precious ounces, and its high strength makes smaller, thinner components attainable. But while it scores high marks for function, aluminum also takes on an outstanding variety of looks and feels — a multitude of alternatives for creating and updating handheld devices and technologies for the home.

What a Beauty

HP came to CES touting its new TouchSmart tm2 notebook PC. The powerful, convertible, touch-enabled notebook is encased in a lovable aluminum finish with a “Riptide” engraved illustration. The versatile tm2 can be used as a 12.1-inch laptop or as tablet and input method is by finger, digital pen or keyboard. The tm2 is a perfect tool for students or artists. Transformed into a tablet, students can easily take notes and artists can sketch using the digital pen. Expected in stores January 17 at a base price of $949, the tm2 is only available in one color – sort of a lavender blushish shade -- perfect for artistic-minded users.

Aluminum: Growing in Favor

Apple is not participating in the Consumer Electronics Show, but according to MSNBC the company’s presence “looms” over CES. This year, Apple is showcasing its products in a 25,000-square-foot “ILounge.” If you visit, you might note how many of Apple’s products on display use aluminum. With its durability, recyclability and eye-catching surface finishes, aluminum is growing in favor among many consumer electronics manufacturers. Here’s a link to the MSNBC story.

Design for Manufacturing

Automotive designers think in terms of years. Milestones for aerospace engineers may be decades apart. But product cycles in consumer electronics can shrink to a few months. Concentrated timetables make it critical to ground design decisions in an understanding of material and production.

Designing with aluminum may require expertise in fields as divergent as thermal management; engineered surfaces; systems integration; LED, LCD and other display technologies; metallurgy and metalworking; packaging; environmental issues; quality assurance; and testing. Finding all these disciplines under one roof can spell the difference between just meeting a deadline and creating a superior product.

Gaining deep expertise takes time, so many designers multiply their capabilities by sharing design briefs — as early as possible — with multidisciplinary teams assembled by suppliers of materials and processing technologies.

Sony’s Kindle Competition--The Daily Edition--Boasts Attractive Aluminum Body

Electronic books, or e-books, will also be rolled out in abundance at CES.

The Daily Edition from Sony, one of three e-readers in their lineup, features Sony’s award-winning industrial design and and boasts an attractive aluminum body.

Alcoa aluminum can create thinner consumer products in a wide variety of looks and finishes (who wants a thick e-reader?). Aluminum also provides a stronger, more durable finish.


Industry tracker Forrester Research predicts that six million e-readers will be sold in the United States alone in 2010, doubling the number bought in the country the prior year.

An eagerly-awaited QUE e-reader by Plastic Logic will premier Thursday in an invitation-only press conference slated prior to the opening of the show floor.

"We are going to be awash in e-books," Enderle said. "The contrast between tablets and e-books is going to be pronounced."

Lightweight, bare-bones laptops referred to as netbooks or "ultraportables" will also be a rage at CES as computer makers debut offerings tailored for a market that has boomed during hard times.

It’s Not Just About Cool Finishes at CES

Aluminum for the consumer electronics market isn’t just about the cool finishes. It's also about the functionality, better costs and recyclability that aluminum provides. Aluminum provides greater levels of strength and durability while simultaneously shedding unwanted width and weight. And aluminum helps design for a better environment.

Visitors to the Consumer Electronics Show this week in Vegas will probably see hundreds of these machines with slightly different specs and differing case designs but most of them made with aluminum.

Alcoa aluminum offers durability, sustainability and longevity for consumer products and is preferred by designers because it is contemporary, stronger and has an authentic, natural feel.